Saving robots: saving lives with driverless cars.

The use of drones to rescue Australian swimmers last week was only the beginning of the robotics revolution.

An Australian lifeguard piloted an unmanned drone in a rough sea off the north coast of new south wales on January 18 to rescue two teenagers. It’s exciting to see a small drone where two struggling swimmers drop their floating gear, because it’s relatively easy to rescue in an ideal, spacious environment using sophisticated robotics.

But we are now using robotic systems that operate under strict constraints: they require a remote control or powerful GPS signal, and open Spaces that allow autonomous driving.

The first is in the scenario

These robots do not need to be smaller, more powerful, heat resistant or collision-proof, including more sensors or better user interfaces. The real challenge for robotics researchers is to develop unmanned rescue robots that can make independent decisions and work unsupervised in small, chaotic Spaces.

In the future, the scene of a rescue drone will be the first to erode beneath a collapsed building, or to look for the wreckage of a plane in a thick forest for survivors, otherwise it may take days to reach.

The challenge for roboticists is to create driverless cars that can adapt to unforeseen situations using previously available information and limited resources.

We did not see widespread deployment of robotic search and rescue (SAR) until researchers found ways to improve the ability of mobile robots to operate in confined Spaces, enhance their sense of self, and give them tools to identify any specific mission intention in unforeseen circumstances.

City search and rescue.

I’m a professor at the university of Calgary, Schulich school of engineering, and four former robots, chief executives, and I’m developing technologies and systems to implement and promote use, deploy and further design a cost-effective, highly mobile, responsive robot technology.

One focus of our research is to develop drones that can respond quickly to urban disasters, such as finding victims of collapsed buildings quickly after an earthquake.

Unmanned ground, submarines and aircraft can save lives faster than conventional technology and tools, respond to disasters faster, and respond to emergencies faster.

In August 2017, a five-story building collapsed in mumbai, India, killing 24 people. Rescuers removed 37 people from construction waste.

If you can use drones and robotic search scenarios, more people may be saved. In a typical building collapse, rescuers need an average of five to eight hours to check the scene to make sure victims are safe. Drones and robots can shorten delays.

Full of potential

Robots were first used in urban areas after the 2001 attacks on the world trade center. These devices have been developed primarily for military or other applications, but some remotely and remotely operated robotic systems have enhanced search and recovery capabilities.

They are looking for a path through the rubble, which will allow rescuers to dig faster, search for victims and assess the structure of buildings.

Robots provide the rapid response needed to assess ground hazards, including fire departments, police and other people at risk. Even so, robots cannot penetrate the complex Spaces of buildings because of their inconveniences and the complexity of using joysticks to guide them.

The military is particularly interested in developing highly mobile drones with robotic weapons that can travel in highly confined Spaces and interact directly with their surroundings.

For example, traditional drone systems such as helicopters and quadcopters cannot tilt and maneuver, allowing them to rise and fall from ships on tilted mountains or rough seas.

In the future, these vehicles will be able to interact with the environment, collect samples, clear rubbish, provide medical assistance or assess victims.

Build a better future.

To be truly useful, these systems must gain some independence. They must be able to modify their behavior while collecting new information, but always follow and work with others.

We need better artificial intelligence (AI) tools to achieve this. Only in this way can rescue robots learn to solve problems without data or human experience. The enhanced artificial intelligence will enable the robot to move itself in the entire operating environment with the help of minimal human resources and to adjust itself in novel and breakthrough ways.

Robots that can adjust their movements automatically are needed. They must be able to walk, run, roll, crawl, crawl, jump, fly or swim in response to changing environmental conditions.

These tools will also ensure that automated robots can handle unexpected situations or challenge their perception, modeling, planning or moving tasks.

Because of its design, drones found in Australia take more than 20 to 30 minutes to fly, can’t fly very far, and can still go home. The existing SAR robot device has limited battery capacity, small carrying capacity and insufficient adaptability, seriously restricting its application.

We need rescue robots that can hover like helicopters, quickly switching to high speed and through challenging environments. These and humanoid robots using tools (power drills, hydraulic lifts, scissors and axes) are currently under development and will change the rules of the game.

They will help responders and victims and reduce costs in ways we have not yet discovered.